Washington D.C.-based GreenSmith Energy Management Systems, Inc. yesterday unveiled a battery system designed to reduce peak load on power plants.
The company’s Distributed Energy Storage Systems (DESS) could allow utilities to spread the demand for electricity production across time and allow customers to more efficiently
manage electricity demand and reduce costs.
By storing lower cost electricity at night
and using it during the daytime peaks, the spot market purchasing of
more expensive electricity to satisfy peak demand can be reduced. The
GreenSmith DESS base units are designed to shift up to 20 kilowatt hours (kWh) of daily
load using a proprietary battery management system operating for
3,000 to 4,000 cycles, equating to 8 to 11 years, the company said.
Like other battery systems in development by companies like Altairnano and A123Systems, Greensmith’s battery would also allow for the storage of electricity produced by intermittent renewable sources, such as solar and wind power.
GreenSmith’s unit is configured for sale to utilities and designed to provide
centralized control that is complementary to smart grid initiatives. These
units may be installed outdoors with a small footprint, and operate
with low maintenance over multiple years, the company said.
"The electric power industry has been under increasing pressure from regulators and institutional investors to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions," said Bruce Edelston, Principal of the Energy Policy Group, an industry consultancy. "Innovations like those from GreenSmith will drive more efficient use of existing generation plants, as well as encourage the use of renewable energy sources."
"Since the unit is controlled by the utility, the solution is transparent to the end user of electricity and does not require consumer behavior change," said Rodney Smith, CEO and Co-founder of GreenSmith. "Our invention will enable utilities to optimize grid performance providing peak reduction & smart load management."
GreenSmith is a provider of intelligent, distributed energy storage systems (DESS) that shift load and flatten peak electricity demand by utilizing electricity in distributed locations stored during off-peak hours.
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